It’s a tough subject as these people “can” have very good views or opinions, but there does feel like a certain level of disrespect towards blogs etc.
I think sometimes their level of journalism blows smoke in places there should not be smoke. It’s great to read a well thought out and often poetic article or review, but a lot of the time it can be pretentious and convoluted.

It’s the people on the bottom who hold up the people above and without us they fall and crumble. A little more respect should be shown.

Leigh’s statement regarding journalists being lambs to the slaughter of hype could make sense: many of them gobble up so much shit that it’s now ingrained in their daily diet. And those poor folks can’t help it, right?… Right?

At least that kind of borked logic is useful for something – Comedy.

Great read.

You want actually JOURNALISTIC work from GAME JOURNALISTS? Seriously? When I start seeing it from those who deliver the news to people again, then I worry about these twerps.

Ok, ok… Doc. You rule, but I really do think that’s asking a little much of these people concidering the people who deliver “real” news these days.

Hey Doc, while I know the site is called “Sarcastic Gamer”, is it that hard for you to dial down the vitriol a few notches? I,for one, have never once had to roll out of my “sleep number bed every morning and slog over to your video game console and turn it on.” Actually, I bust my ass nearly every day working at my job … which just so happens to be covering games and comics as a journalist (and yeah, I said ‘journalist’).

This whole subject leaves a bad taste in my mouth because of people on the extreme ends of BOTH sides of the argument. On the one hand, you’ve got some people in the industry that are self-important, ego driven divas that have forgotten their role as informers to the public, and instead take the holier-than-thou approach that their word is gospel and those that don’t agree with you are ill-informed slugs who couldn’t be more wrong. On the other side of the argument are people like you in this article, who automatically discount the hard work put into this field, spouting out pure and unadulterated bullshit that all a game journalist does is sit on his ass all day playing games and making sure his lips are correctly positioned on the collective ass of the video game PR reps.

For the record, in my time as a journalist, I’ve butted heads with more than a few people. I’ve had reviews pulled because I refused to change what I thought of a game to please some higher up at a publisher. I’ve had more than my share of hate mail from fans of games I’ve written about telling me how I have “no business” writing about games. Hell, I’ve even even had to go a few rounds with everyone’s favorite video game version of Voldemort, Jack Thompson. Still, I get up each morning, grab my coffee, and get right back to work.

As far as reviews go, at the end of the day the truth of the matter is that ANY review is simply a single person’s point of view and opinion. I never try to tell people they need to think like I do. Instead, I try to put my viewpoint out there and to explain why I think what I do to the best of my ability. Sometimes people with agree with me and sometimes they don’t. And hey, it’s entirely possible that my opinion (like anyone else’s) could very well fall into the minority. Either way though, it’s still one point of view, which I do my best to qualify with the rest of the review. As far as PR influence and fueling the hype machine? At the end of the day, it’s MY reputation on the line … and I’m not going to compromise that for ANY amount of “Eggs Benedict”

The same goes for my news writing, of which I’ve done a hell of a lot more of the past few years as opposed to reviewing games. Covering the news usually means sorting through a daily avalanche of press releases, making calls to developers, PR reps, publishers, contacts, etc.; then picking apart what they’ve said and running it all through a bullshit filter, then trying to follow-up on it all, all while still trying to meet the deadlines to keep the news timely and the quota of having x number of stories posted daily to keep things humming along.

Of course, that’s skipping over the other bits of work, like setting up and scheduling interviews, pitching features, defending articles, juggling numbers, fact-checking sources, etc. You know, all that pesky “journalist” work. And on top of all of this, because this is a facet of the entertainment industry, we’ve got to make it interesting to read.

I just can’t help but find it funny that people bitch and moan that the video game industry doesn’t seem to be taken seriously, but in the same breath they want to bitch and moan about the people who do take it seriously.

Doc, I’m friends with some of the people involved with Sarcastic Gamer, and I’ve even tried to help ‘em out from time to time. I’ve also been following things here for a bit, and genuinely enjoy the site and what’s been done here. Think about all the hard work you guys have done to make this place come together … and imagine someone coming along and pissing in YOUR Corn Flakes, telling people that what YOU do amounts to nothing more than rolling out of bed, turning on a game console, cracking a couple of jokes, then patting yourself on the back and saying “Good job” before curling back up under that nice, warm blanket. You and I both know that’s a load of BS, and you’d be pretty irate about it.

Okay, I’m stepping off of my soapbox now. After all, it’s nearly 5:30 in the morning, and I haven’t yet Twittered my every move to slobbering fans and started writing about video games before getting my EA sponsored breakfast and catching my free flight to the Caymen Islands for a press junket. (Yes folks, I do use sarcasm as well)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QsXrswJ-yM

Available until requested to be taken down…

Hey man, that was my mark N’Gai was leaving. Get your facts straight!

Doc, you are a fucking genius. You too Lono, since you helped.

There’s a reason game journalism is the way it is. It’s because journalism is a dying art, in case anyone hasn’t noticed. Not only are 99% of game journalists not actually trained in the art of journalism, most of them don’t even know how to write a fucking proper email. It’s a wonder they manage to play games in their parents basement with all the Britney Spears music and root beer they ingest.

How do I know this? I used to be one of them.

I’ve never been classically trained, if you will, nor have I taken a single journalism class. All the learning I’ve done is experience based. I’ve forgone free airplane trips and nice hotels, paid my way to conventions, and taken up offers. It’s part of being a journalist, no matter what you do. Accepting anything automatically biases you, including taking free games. Sure, that’s hard to avoid since it’s nearly impossible to get something before it comes out, but you take what you can get.

Most game journalists today live off their parents and just want free games. Oh, and they write something. You know, a few scribbled notes cobbled together into sentences that aren’t worth the fucking free internet the majority of their readers use.

Hell, most are intimidated by game developers and publishers. I know guys who can’t call and confirm news, who don’t have the confidence or credibility or anything to even say what they are actually thinking.

So yeah, Totilo is right. You have to find good journalism…that’s the price we pay for having an open medium that anyone can plug an ethernet cable into their combined asses and excrete their shit into. It sucks horrendously.

Thankfully, we’ve got sites like this. No one gets to the point the best than a good comedian. Thanks for the read! Glad I went to pages 2 and 3!

I agree with Kojin here.

While I may not agree with everything said during the GDC rant, I think it’s still far more compelling, challenging, and engaging than SG is giving it credit for. Frankly, I think there’s a serious disconnect between what was said, and your interpretation, as if you went into this with a chip on your shoulder to begin with, because you consequently arrive at some truly head scratching conclusions. (i.e. I don’t think many casual gamers even heard of Croal, let alone be the demographic responsible for his success)

And I don’t understand why game journalists should thank the industry. Do movie critics thank the film industry? I write for film, and not once have I been thanked, nor have I ever expected the gesture. Journalists create buzz for these products, and the industry needs them, so it’s very much a two way relationship.

Other sites have formed retorts towards the panel, but do so in a way that promotes dialogue and discussion, whereas here at SG, the aim reeks of “holier than thou” airs, as if intending to shut down the conversation completely, because after all, these journalists are “douches”, right? And what “douche” is worth listening to?

@Doc
I am disappointed. Instead of making reasonable arguments to back up what you have said, you and Lono are simply making fun of the points that were laid against your article. I honestly believed you and SG better than that. I am sorry that I was wrong.

As do I. Doc is entitled to his opinions, as is Lono and everyone else here. However, what I do not think is okay is Doc dismissing my or your opinion Interlink so casually and with what I perceive as disdain.

I expressed my opinions without being juvenile against anyone else here; I would appreciate the same courtesy in return.

Where have N’Gai or Totilio or Alexander said that they are “above that” in regards to commenting on their articles. I would be interested in seeing that for myself.

I also don’t have issue with Doc being emotional in his article. I just would like to have some basis for his claims then simply “emotional outbursts”.

I was brought us to always check your sources, so I just want to see the basis behind Doc’s and you claims. I like Doc, but I’m not going to blindly accept what he has to say without having some basis behind it.